Leave no member behind

Abstract

The World Council of Credit Unions' (WOCCU) Credit Union Growth Program helps credit unions in Rwanda, Kenya, and Colombia reach the world's poorest -- those earning less than $2 per day -- with microloans, savings accounts, and financial education. Using outreach lessons learned through this program, WOCCU will create a "credit union growth tool kit" and methodology it can replicate in other developing countries to increase membership and reduce global poverty, explains John Ikeda, WOCCU research manager. WOCCU aims to double low-income membership at project credit unions in three years. This will require keeping transaction costs low enough to make serving very poor people financially viable. Next year, high-tech tools will help participating credit unions serve rural communities.